Pontoon for raising sunken vessels.



A. CUNNING.

PONTOQN FOR RAISING SUNKEN VESSELS. APPLICATION FILED A UG.9 1918.

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A. CUNNING.

PONTOON ron musms SUNKEN VESSELS.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.9 I918.

Patented Jan. 28, 1919.

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A. CUNNING.

PONTOON FOR RAISING SUNKEN VESSELS.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.9 I9l8.

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Patented Jan. 28, 1919.

UNITED T ATE T ornicnf ALEXANDER cunivrne, or roar HURON, MICHIGAN.

ronroolv non RAISING sunken vEssnLs.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALEXANDER CUNNING, a citizen of the United States of America,

residing at Port Huron, in the country of St.

Clair and State of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements 1n Pontoons for Raising Sunken Vessels, of

which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

An ob ect of my mventlon 1s to provide novel pontoons for raising sunken or stranded vessels, the pontoons serving as lighters for salvage work and'as quarters and workshops for wrecking crews.

Another object of my invention is to provide novel salvage pontoons that may be safely used for raising'sunken vessels on an even keel, without any danger of the pontoons colliding 0r capsizing, and provision is made for expeditiously handling the hoisting chains or cables of the pontoons.

' wherein- Figure 1 is a plant of a pontoon, partly broken away; i

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic longitudinal sectional view of the same; I

Fig. 3 is an enlarged cross sectional view of a portion of a pontoon, taken about midship; r

Fig. 4 is a plan of a portion of the pontoon, showing a divers way, and

Fig. 5 is an end view of a set or pair of pontoons in position for raising a sunken vessel. a

Each pontoon is constructed of strong and durable material, preferably from structural steel including girders, beams, columns, side and bottom plates, web plates, hatchways, trusses and braces, all fabricated to form a rigid hull that is substantially rectangular in cross section, the hull having a fiat bottom 1, parallel side walls 2, an arched upper deck 3, intermediate decks 4 and 5 and undercut ends 6 that may serve either as the Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 28, 1919.

Application filed August 9, 1918. Serial No. 249,101.

stern or bow of the pontoon, it being prefer 1 able to use the pontoons simply for work purposes irrespective of any propulsion means whatsoever.

The upper deck of the pontoon is provided with a plurality of hatchways 7 and these hatchways communicate with compartments 9 between the decks 3, 4 and 5, thus permitting of the pontoon being used as a lighter or for storage purposes at a dock. Along the side of the hatchways 7 are rails 10, constituting a track for a traveling crane or derrick 11, and this derrick may have its own source of power, as shown,

' or depend on a boiler 12 located in a boiler and'pump room 13 at one side of the pontoon. The same side of the pontoon may have coal bunkers 1 1 and such other compartments which must be contiguous to a boiler and engineroom.

Between the lower deck 5 and the bottom of the hull are compartments 15 and somewhat similar compartments 16 may be constructed at the sides of the pontoon, said compartments being used to increase or de crease the buoyancy of the pontoon. For instance, all of the compartments may be constructed as airtight compartments that will, under ordinary circumstances, positlvely prevent the pontoon from sinking. It

is also possible to use the compartments for water which may be admitted to the compartments by sea valves, to cause the pontoon to sink a prescribed distance relative to the surface of the water in which the pontoon floats.

By providing suitable pumps about the pontoon, the water compartments can be emptied and thus cause the buoyancy of the pontoon to assist in a raising operation. This is particularly advantageous after pontoons have been attached to a sunken ves sel, as the low position of the pontoon in the water will facilitate diver operations and serve as a ballast particularly in a rought sea. Then, after all preparations have been made for raising a load, the compartments may be pumped out and thus cause the pontoons to perform the initial raising opera tions, independent of any hoisting engines or other mechanism. It is with such ends in view that I do not care to confine myself to the specific use of the compartments 15 and 16.

One side of each pontoon has a plurality of angularly disposed chain or cable ways 17 and 18, said chain ways being in the form of tubes or pipes having the upper ends thereof terminating at socket members 19 in the deck 3 and adjacent the hoists, steam winches, or chain winding devices 20, said devices being of a conventional form ordinarily employed for raising or pulling in anchor chains. I

The lower ends of the chainways 18 terminate in socket members 21 in the bottom 1 of the pontoon, and the lower ends of the chainways 17 terminate in socket members 22, carried by the inner walls 23 of diver ways '24:, said diver ways extending from the deck 3 to the bottom 1 of the pontoon, with the inner wall 23 provided with ladders or hand grips It is necessary that the chainways l7 and 18 extend through some compartments of the pontoon and the arrangement of the chainways necessitates the 1 chainways 17 being at a greater angle than the chainways 18,'and this is in order that certain chains 26 may extend from the bottom of the pontoon and under a sunken ves sel 27, while other chains 28 extend from the confronting sides of a pair of pontoons and are attached to the sides or gunwales of the sunken vessel 27, as best shown in Fig. 5.

In order that a pair of pontoons may safely cooperate in raising a sunken vessel, the sides of the pontoons having the diver and chainways areprovided with a plurality of extensible booms 29 that may be extended .by power or manually, said booms being in opposed relation withthe confronting ends thereof connected ball and socket joints 30 or any conventional form of universal .joint which will permit of the pontoons freely floating inparallelism and spaced relation, without any danger of'collision or'a moving a portion or all of the contents there 'of, and by using thebuoyancy ofthe pontoon prior tothe hoisting engines.

Each pontoon is equipped with fore and aft anchors 31 together with the necessary mechanism for raising'and lowering the said anchors. After locating a sunken vessel or wreck, it is therefore possible to anchor the pontoon in proper position for raising or work about the sunken vessel, and as salvage operations ordinarily require some time, each pontoon is provided with quarters for the officers and crew machine shop, and all appurtenances to expediteoperations about a sunken vessel. v

It is thought that the use of the pontoons will be apparent without further description, and while in the drawings there is illustrated a preferred embodiment of my invention, it is to be understood that the structural elements are susceptible to such variations and modifications as fall within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is 1. A pontoon having a deck and'side diver ways withthe outer sides thereof open to the atmosphere and water and extending. throughoutthe depth ofthe pontoon, a ladder in each diver way, chain ways extending from said deck to said diver ways andto the bottom of said pontoon and having the ends thereof open with those chainways having 7 the ends thereof opening at the bottom of said pontoon between those chainways opening into the diver ways, hoisting chains extending through said chainways, and means on said deckadapted for raising and lowering said "chains. V

2. The combination of a pair of pontoons having the confronting sides thereof provided with diver ways'having the outer sides thereof open to the atmosphere and water, booms carried by the confronting sides of said pontoons and having ends thereof loosely connected to maintain said pontoons in spaced relation, chainways at the confronting sides of'said pontoons, chains extending through said chainways, and means on said pontoons adapted for raising and lowering said chains.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

ALEXANDER OUNNING. Witnesses:

ANNA M. Donn, KARL H. BUTLER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained fdr 'five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

- Washington, 10. 0. I 

